Transit Part 3: Expanded Example

Driver Jack leaves from his Base to begin his day of driving.  Jack’s first assignment is to be a Local Bus for Hub 7.  His base is in Hub 1.
To limit deadhead time where a bus is moving with no passengers aboard, Jack is sent to Hub one to pick up a passenger who is going to a Hub 7C address.  Jack picks up the passenger from Hub 1, drives directly to Hub 7, where he picks up two other passengers going to area 7C, which will be the first local area his route provides service to.

When Jack returns to the Hub from area 7C he has dropped off the 3 he left the hub with and has 4 new people on board.  One is going to area 2B, another is going to area 5A, and the other two are going to area 7B.  Jack’s bus is equipped with an interactive touch-screen routing system that allows for real-time changes.  Through this routing screen Jack sees that he will next be routed into area 7B and so he only unloads the two passengers going to areas 2B and 5A.  The two going to 7B stay on board his bus.  Jack picks up three more passengers from the Hub who are also going into area 7B and leaves the Hub for area 7B.

Upon returning to Hub 7, Jack has 4 new people on board.  One is going to area 7A, one is going to area 8A, and the other two are going to area 8C.  Jack’s screen tells him that he is going to be used as an Extended Local Area Bus from Hub 7 to Hub 8 and he will be routed through areas 7B and 8A.  He unloads his one passenger going to area 7A and keeps the other three on board.  There are two other passengers at Hub 7 also going to addresses in Hub 8’s area, but not where Jack will be driving.  Jack loads these two passengers, leaves Hub 7 passing through 7B and 8A loading and unloading along the way.  As he arrives at Hub 8, he learns that he is now a Local Area Bus for Hub 8 and was made a temporary Extended Local Area bus because demand in Hub 7 was dropping while demand in Hub 8 was increasing.  Using him as an Extended Local Area Bus allowed Dispatch to transfer him from one Hub to another without having dead time where no passengers were on board.

Jack works in Hub 8 for a time, and then takes lunch upon arriving at the Hub.  Because he is going to Lunch, a relief driver takes over Jacks bus, after making a brief safety inspection, and the passengers stay on the bus.  This allows Jack to have his lunch at a regular time, while allowing the passengers to keep moving, and allows the transit provider to keep all of its buses moving.  Upon returning from lunch, Jack learns that a Transfer Bus driver is going to lunch and that he will take over that driver’s Transfer Route beginning at Hub 8.  Accordingly, Jack makes a brief safety inspection of the bus he is taking over, and then officially relieves the driver.

Thank you for taking time to read my program.  Obviously, if I didn't believe in my own program, I would not have published it for others to read and ponder on.

An Opinion Article by Dave Kemper
                   _________________________________

It has been said that: "One definition of insanity is to do the same thing, the same way, over and over and over again, each time expecting to achieve a different result."
Therefore, we must either CHANGE the way we live, or we bind our future to our past as if with CHAINS.
"I do not consider myself to be better than anyone else.  But I do believe in exercising my right to not stay stupid."

David W. Kemper, Author
© Copyright 2014 by David William Kemper.  All right reserved
No part or portion of this publication may be modified in any manner without the express written permission of the author.  This publication is licensed for your personal use and enjoyment only and may not be used as a reference by any company, government entity, or other organization without the express written permission of the author.  This publication may not be re-sold or given away to other people.  Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.